The Heard Museum in downtown Phoenix, Arizona is an internationally recognized and respected museum.  Since the beginning in 1929, the vision of the co-founders Maie and Dwight Heard has grown into a museum with a vast number of quality pieces in the collection, an education institution with a variety of programs, and the site of many traveling exhibitions and festivals.  The museum remains dedicated to the accurate portrayal of the world of the Native American through the care and the protection of the cultures and the artwork.  The pieces in the museum are illustrated with the stories of the different Nations, and combines the beauty of the work with the beauty of the lives and the people who created that art. 

The Museum is centrally located conveniently to many of the hotels downtown, for a list of those accommodations, look here. The programs and the exhibitions are world class and innovative and should you be visiting the city of Phoenix during one of the festival times you will be one lucky traveler.  Touring the museum you find everything from Native American paintings and sculpture, to traditional clothing and jewelry, past and present represented.  The museum has a large collection of works in which they own, and also rely on works that are on loan for the duration of the various shows.  Here you will find canvases of paintings centuries old, as well as contemporary and modern artists such as Fritz Scholder. 

On the grounds surrounding the museum you will find landscaped courtyards filled with sculpture and fountains, as well as the Scott L. Libby, Jr. Amphitheatre which provides outdoor entertainment just about year round, with dance performances, film, music concerts and private dinners.  Interactive learning is important, and the museum offers a variety of ways the children, and adults can experience the benefits from a more thorough and in-depth exploration.  This is one of the long standing institutions in the city of Phoenix and should be a part of every one’s travel itinerary when they are in the Valley of the Sun.

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